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Cardamom has been used as a spice and a traditional medicine in many cultures. Modern science shows that cardamom may help improve gut health, lower cholesterol and chronic inflammation, reduce blood pressure, and even fight cancer. Read on to discover all the benefits of cardamom, but also its side effects.

What Is Cardamom?

Cardamom, also known as the “Queen of Spices,” is the world’s most expensive spice after vanilla and saffron [R].

It is a perennial plant of the family of Zingiberaceae, which also includes ginger and turmeric [R].

The plant produces pods or capsules that contain 15 to 20 seeds each. These seeds are often ground to a fine powder before use in cooking or medicine [R].

There are two main types of commercially available cardamom:

Green, large, or true cardamom (Elettaria cardamomum)

Black, small, or winged cardamom (Amomum subulatum)

Because these two species grow at different elevations, regional cuisines and folk medicines tend to favor the species that is most common in their area. Southern Indian cuisine typically uses green cardamom and northern Indian and Nepalese cuisines favor the black. Both types have been used in traditional Unani and Ayurvedic medicines [R].

Components

Cardamom contains a number of potentially active ingredients, the most important of which are [R]:

Terpenes – a class of compounds known for many familiar aromas and associated with antioxidant health benefits.

Antispasmodic: Cardamom reduces potassium-ion-induced contractions in intestinal, bronchial, and heart tissues. It also binds calcium ion receptors to stimulate tissue relaxation. The result is an antispasmodic property that can reduce gut distress, asthma symptoms, and blood pressure. Alternatively, it may achieve the same effects by blocking muscarinic acetylcholine (cholinergic) receptors [R, R, R].

Anti-cancer: Cardamom oil prevents cancer-causing DNA damage. It also increases the activity of natural killer cells and causes cancer cell death through the activation of the ERK1/2 pathway and inhibition of HDAC2 [R, R, R].

Health Benefits of Cardamom

1) Cardamom Reduces Chronic Inflammation

A DB-RCT of 80 pre-diabetic women compared a cardamom supplement to a placebo over 8 weeks. The patients taking green cardamom had decreased markers of inflammation at the end of the trial (hs-CRP and the hs-CRP: IL-6 ratio) [R].

Rats with swollen paws (induced edema) had reduced inflammation when injected with green cardamom extract or with its essential oil at the site of the swelling. The extract/oil likely blocked the production of inflammatory molecules (including COX-2, IL-6, and TNF-α, as well as iNOS) [R, R].

Similar suppression of inflammatory factors was observed with immune cells treated with a green cardamom extract in the laboratory. The extract suppressed Th1 and increased Th2 cytokines [R].

Rats fed a high-fat diet supplemented with black cardamom had increased levels of important antioxidant enzymes: superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione S-transferase (GST) in both their liver and heart [R].

3) Cardamom Lowers Cholesterol

A 19% overall decrease in total cholesterol, 25% decrease in LDL cholesterol, and 15% drop in triglycerides was observed in 20 hypertensive (elevated blood pressure) patients treated with green cardamom powder over a 3-month period [R].

In 80 pre-diabetic women (RCT), the group given green cardamom had lower total cholesterol and lower LDL cholesterol after 2 months [R].

Cardamom Protects Against Heart Damage

In rats fed a high-fat diet, black cardamom helped to protect the heart against free radicals by maintaining a high glutathione (GSH) content [R].

Rats treated with green cardamom for 30 days suffered less heart damage after heart attack and maintained higher levels of antioxidants. This was due to the free radical scavenging and antioxidant activities of the cardamom [R].

5) Cardamom Lowers Blood Pressure

Twenty patients with mildly elevated blood pressure (and not taking medication) were given a twice-daily dose of green cardamom powder for 12 weeks. By the end of the study, their blood pressure levels had dropped to within normal range [R].

Studies in cells and in mice confirm that green cardamom lowers blood pressure by two mechanisms: through the cholinergic pathway, and by controlling calcium ion channels [R].

Cardamom is also a diuretic. Rats fed a green cardamom extract had increased urine volume and excreted higher levels of sodium and potassium ions. Because diuretics help to relax blood vessel walls, which decreases blood pressure, they are often prescribed in combination with blood pressure drugs. This suggests cardamom may potentially be an even more effective therapeutic [R].

Rats fed a high-carb, high-fat diet develop metabolic syndrome. When this diet was supplemented with black cardamom (rich in 1,8-cineole), their metabolic syndrome symptoms got reversed: fat mass decreased, so did blood pressure and triglycerides, while heart and liver function improved. Green cardamom did not have the same effect [R].

In a similar study, obese rats fed a high-carb, high-fat diet with a green cardamom powder supplement showed an improvement in metabolic syndrome symptoms, including reduced belly fat [R].

More studies are required to determine which species of cardamom may have positive effects on metabolic syndrome and weight loss in humans.

7) Cardamom May Reduce Digestive Issues

Cardamom May Reduce Gut Discomfort

This spice improved symptoms of gut discomfort like diarrhea and stomach cramps related to spasms in the gut in animals, due to its antispasmodic action. Treatment of rabbit intestinal cells with green cardamom oil reduced movement. Cardamom likely achieves this by blocking muscarinic receptors (the cholinergic pathway) [R, R].

Cardamom May Prevent Ulcers

Green cardamom extracts and essential oils prevented stomach lesions (ulcers) caused by alcohol or aspirin in rats. Ulcers caused by excess stomach acid did not improve with cardamom treatment. Moreover, one of the extracts was more effective than ranitidine, a drug used to treat ulcers [R].

Bacteria known to cause stomach ulcers (Helicobacter pylori) were only mildly inhibited in the presence of green cardamom extract in a laboratory [R].

8) Cardamom Is Antibacterial and Antifungal

Green cardamom extracts slowed the growth of several species of Candida yeasts when tested in a laboratory. [R].

Black cardamom extracts and its essential oils were able to slow or stop the growth of many bacterial and fungal species when tested in a laboratory. The essential oil was particularly effective, reducing the growth of the largest number of species tested (Bacillus pumilus, Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Saccharomyces cerevisiae) [R].

Cardamom May Improve Oral Health

Both green and black cardamom extracts inhibited the growth of several species of cavity-causing harmful microorganisms commonly found in the human mouth (S.aureus, C. albicans, S. cerevisiae, and S. mutans) [R].

Cardamom has historically been chewed to freshen breath and even to help smokers quit (when used in nicotine gum), but more studies are needed to determine if its antibacterial properties improve cavities in humans [R, R].

9) Cardamom May Improve Diabetes Symptoms

Rats with symptoms similar to diabetes were dosed with green cardamom and compared to a group given a common diabetes medication, pioglitazone. Both were effective in reducing blood cholesterol and fasting blood glucose levels, and preventing liver enlargement. However, only pioglitazone effectively lowered blood glucose after a meal [R].

However, in an RCT with 204 type 2 diabetes patients, green cardamom supplements (3g powder in their tea per day for 8 weeks) didn’t improve blood sugar levels [R].

A similar study of 80 pre-diabetic women measured no significant difference in blood sugar levels of those given green cardamom compared to those who received a placebo over 2 months but did show improved insulin sensitivity [R].

10) Cardamom May Improve Liver Function

Rats fed a high-fat diet had increased antioxidant enzymes and glutathione (GSH) in their liver tissues over a 90-day treatment with black cardamom. They retained better liver function as a result [R].

Cardamom Prevents Cancer Growth

Mice given oral doses of green cardamom had reduced incidence (number) and size of tumors of both skin and stomach cancers. These cancer-protective effects were observed when cardamom was given before and after tumors appeared [R, R, R].

Natural killer cells are part of the immune system’s response to seek out and kill cancer cells. The activity of these cells is enhanced by the presence of green cardamom when tested in cells [R].

12) Cardamom May Reduce Anxiety

Rats with symptoms similar to PTSD were given green cardamom extracts either before or after stressful sessions. In both treatments, anxiety-related behaviors improved compared to rats that did not receive the cardamom [R].

These effects are probably due to quercetin, a flavonoid in cardamom, which reduced symptoms in rats with stress-induced anxiety and depression [R, R].

13) Cardamom May Reduce Pain

Green cardamom oil decreased pain in rats with swollen paws. This reduction was similar to another group of rats treated with aspirin [R].

14) Cardamom May Be a Sedative

Mice fed a green cardamom extract became sedated, similar to the effect of a prescription sedative (diazepam) [R].

More study is needed, but this sedative effect may be the source of claims that cardamom is good for patients with epilepsy [R].

15) Cardamom May Reduce Asthma Symptoms

Because of its anti-inflammatory properties, cardamom has long been a folk remedy for asthma.

When tested in rats and in rabbit throat cells, green cardamom extract had an anti-asthma effect, relaxing airway muscles through control of calcium ion channels [R].

However, cardamom does stimulate Th2 allergic responses, so it would be hard to say what the effects on asthma would be in humans or animals.

Side Effects

Cardamom is listed as a rare trigger of severe allergic reactions (anaphylaxis) [R].

This is likely because it stimulates Th2 cells responsible for allergic reactions. In rare cases, this dermatitis may even be systemic after ingestion of cardamom [R].

Cardamom extract may act as a hormone disruptor in humans. It was able to bind hormone receptors in cell studies (estrogen and androgen receptors) [R].

Limitations and Caveats

Many of the benefits are derived from animal studies. There are a couple of human studies, but even those have small amounts of test subjects.

Differences Between the Two Species of Cardamom

Most studies focus on only one of the two main kinds of cardamom, green and black. In a few studies where both were analyzed, the health benefits were sometimes very different between the two types [R].

Incomplete data makes it difficult to determine which type might be of best value for some health conditions where only one type has been thoroughly tested.

Table of evidence for health benefits described in this article:

(A “+” indicates evidence for a species of cardamom (green or black) and a particular health benefit. A “-” indicates that a species was tested and did not have evidence for the health benefit. A blank cell indicates that no study has been done at the time of writing. Where conflicting results were found, both “+/-” are indicated in the table.)

Evidence

Green

Black

Anti-inflammatory

+

Asthma

+

Antioxidant

+

+

Weight loss

+/-

+

Digestive issues

+

Ulcers

+

Antibacterial, antifungal

+

+

Lower cholesterol

+

Heart health

+

+

Lower blood pressure

+

Diuretic

+

Diabetes

+/-

Liver function

+/-

+

Anti-cancer

+

+

Th2 immunity

+

Anti-anxiety

+

Anti-pain

+

Sedative

+

Causing allergies

+

+

Benefits May Depend on the Type of Extract

Not all studies use the same cardamom sources – examples used include powder from the seeds, crude extracts, alcohol-soluble extracts, water-soluble extracts, and the essential oil, among others. Some of these cardamom sources might have lost certain potentially active compounds, and in doing so, fail to identify potential health effects in their study data.

The composition of cardamom can additionally vary from harvest to harvest according to environmental factors.

Drug Interactions

There were a few reports in which patients with high cardamom intakes excreted red blood cells through their urine (hematuria). Patients taking anticoagulant or antiplatelet medications should be particularly mindful of their cardamom intake [R].

Because cardamom can lower cholesterol significantly on its own, patients prescribed medication to lower their cholesterol should be careful about combining those therapies with cardamom. The same is true for patients taking medication to lower blood pressure.

Natural Sources

Seed pods

Whole seeds

Powdered seeds (spice)

Tea

Essential oil

Common sources of cardamom include the seed pods, spice powder (ground seeds), essential oil, and tea. Cardamom tea and its essential oil are likely to only contain a portion of the compounds responsible for its health effects, so spice powder may be the most complete form of supplementation for health [R].

Cardamom supplements often come bundled with other wellness herbs for various uses (mind health, colon health, etc.) or as part of chai or other tea blends.

Dosage

Dosages reported in studies varied greatly depending on the type of cardamom extract or preparation. For cardamom powder, 3g daily seems sufficient for most health benefits and is within normal doses for dietary cardamom intake [R].

Of common supplement formulations (whey protein, guar gum, carrageenan), the best formulation for encapsulation while still preserving shelf stability was the 30% whey protein isolate [R].

User Experiences

Users of cardamom tea typically report improved regularity and digestion, but few other specific health benefits.

Essential oil users sometimes reported relief of muscle cramps when the oil was rubbed on the skin.

Customers who used cardamom capsule supplements sometimes saw improved cholesterol or heart health, but as a part of an improved diet and lifestyle.

Buy Cardamom:

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JOE COHEN

CEO, SelfHacked

About Joe

Growing up, Joe was plagued with a myriad of health issues such as gut problems, autoimmune issues, chronic fatigue, brain fog, insomnia, and general inflammation. Both conventional and alternative doctors weren’t able to help him, so he decided to fix himself. With lots of health questions and few satisfying answers, Joe decided to read every research paper he could get his hands on and conduct thousands of experiments on his own body in order to fix his health issues. Joe started SelfHacked in late 2013 when he successfully fixed all of his issues, and now it gets millions of readers a month looking to educate themselves about how they can improve their health. Joe is now a thriving author, speaker, and serial entrepreneur, founding SelfDecode & LabTestAnalyzer.

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